Job 8

After Job got done rebuking Eliphaz, Bildad stood up to rebuke Job. His discourse continued on in much the same vein as Eliphaz’s speech, except Bildad didn’t have the class, style, and finesse of Eliphaz. Instead of "massaging" his point of view, Bildad was ready to get down and dirty and to the point: "When your children sinned against him, he gave them over to the penalty of their sin." (vs 4) In other words, Bildad was saying, your kids got exactly what they deserved. Wow. Nice friends, Job.

It’s what Bildad said next, however, that concerns us today: "If you are pure and upright, even now he will rouse himself on your behalf and restore you to your prosperous state." (vs 6) It really isn’t surprising to see this theological bit of "wisdom" represented by at least one of Job’s friends. Unfortunately, it’s still "wisdom" that floats around today. If we were just more faithful, more righteous, more something, God would bless us.

That’s just not the way it works in this world.First of all, once again, Job was in his predicament because he was righteous. He wasn’t in his predicament because he was being punished for his sin, as his friends suggested. So right there, we know that Bildad’s assumption is wrong.

But in addition to this, there are countless examples in Scripture of bad things happening to good people. Abel was righteous, and he was "rewarded" with murder at the hands of his brother Cain. The prophet Isaiah was sawed in half by a wicked king. Stephen, faithful to the very end, was stoned to death in God’s name. History is littered with the tragic stories of righteous men and women who met with very unsavory circumstances. God didn’t come to their rescue, as Bildad suggested.

At the same time, good men of God (such as Jeremiah and David) asked, Why do the wicked prosper? So, it’s apparent that this black and white view of cause-and-effect doesn’t always apply in this world. The righteous are not always rescued. The wicked are not always stopped. Often, the wicked prosper and the righteous suffer. That’s the way it is.

That’s the way it is because we’re all living in a war zone. And in the middle of a war, all bets are off. God can and does protect the righteous—always. But He does it in the ultimate sense. In this life, we are not guaranteed health, wealth, or an easy time. On the contrary, Jesus promised exactly the opposite: "Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you." (Matt 5:11-12)

God deals in the ultimate. And ultimately, each of us will be given what we choose. Those who choose God will live with Him forever. Those who reject God will be separated from Him forever. Nothing can snatch away our ability to make that choice, for God honors our freedom to choose. Until then, however, we live in a world where sin and evil are on the loose. And, as Job and so many others have found out through the years, evil hurts the righteous just as much as the wicked.